Accepting the (Challenging) Call to Rest
Sometimes when God calls me to do something challenging, I distract myself with other ways to serve him to avoid doing what he is so clearly calling me to do. It’s as though if I do other productive things, He’ll forget about what He called me to do. But it turns out, God doesn’t get distracted by my busyness.
Recently, the idea of rest has been weighing on my heart. It’s easy for me to dodge this one because I can justify the need to stay busy. I mean, as Christians we should be taking action, right? And that means I can fill up every minute of the day running from one thing to the next until I’m completely burnt out and resentful, right?
Maybe not.
Rest is out of my comfort zone. Where do I start? How long do I have to rest for? Is there a template for this? Can you show me an example? Do I have to be quiet? Can I rest with someone else? Is there a YouTube tutorial I can watch about this? I always feel like I’m doing it wrong. (The fact that I’m trying to figure out how to “do” rest correctly might illuminate the whole problem with my perspective on rest to begin with...)
Until recently, I’d never thought about being called to rest in a spiritual sense. The “do-er” in me assumes that God is calling me to do things. And sometimes He is. He’s given me a chance to work, to serve, and to fill up my calendar with dozens of things that are productive and truly make me feel fulfilled. But somehow, I’m resistant to the idea that he could be calling me to rest.
As we dive into the topic of rest from a biblical perspective, my thoughts are shifting from being allowed to rest to be called to rest. I think rest can look different for everyone and maybe it’s taking a day off work or maybe it’s just turning off your phone at 9pm. My goal for the summer is to truly understand and put into practice what it means to be called into rest. I’m starting with the idea that it’s ok to not be doing 24/7 and working towards the ability to have a little quiet time without feeling the need to fill up every moment.
Join us on June 24th as we learn about rest as a congregation. We're calling it City Church: A Family at Rest. We'll meet at 9am at All Saint's Reformed Presbyterian Church. Registration and childcare are free. Learn more—and please RSVP!